Sales of Hot Potatoes and Quandary have ended

This is an important announcement for users of Hot Potatoes and Quandary:

Licences for Hot Potatoes 6 and Quandary 2 are no longer being sold (as of June 30, 2009).

Technical support for Hot Potatoes and Quandary ended on August 31, 2009.

Free versions of the programs were released on September 1, 2009.

The Yahoo groups which currently provide support for Hot Potatoes and Quandary will continue, but after August 31 we will not be under any obligation to answer questions on the groups. We hope that users will help each other, as they already do.

Frequently-Asked Questions

Why are you doing this?

We need to write the successor to Hot Potatoes 6, and we cannot do that while we're simultaneously handling the existing tech support load (which has been increasing) and processing orders (which have been decreasing).

Will you make HotPot 6 and Quandary 2 open-source?

No. The codebase is the subject of complicated agreements between multiple parties, and it would be legally difficult to release it even if we wanted to.

When will you release "Hot Potatoes 7"?

When it's finished. We have no idea when that will be. We have clear ideas about what it will look like, but we haven't actually written any code yet, so it will be at least two years away.

When will you release Quandary 3?

"Hot Potatoes 7" will include features which cover most of what Quandary does, so Quandary won't be developed separately.

Why does "Hot Potatoes 7" have quotation marks?

Because we don't know whether it will be called "Hot Potatoes" or not. That depends on a number of factors (including whether the University of Victoria becomes involved in the project).

Why not just hire people to continue supporting and selling HotPot 6 and Quandary while you develop the next version, or to help you write the new version?

Because the programs don't make enough money. If we hired someone to do all the work we currently do to manage, support and sell HotPot and Quandary, it would cost more than the income generated from sales. It's actually cheaper to stop selling it, and focus on writing the next release.

What if I REALLY need your help with Hot Potatoes 6 or Quandary 2 after September 1 2009?

You will be able to pay for consultations if you really want to. We'll be happy to earn money this way. But we charge standard industry rates, so it won't be cheap.